Wine Advisor
Clarendon Hills, Astralis Shiraz 2011
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The deep garnet-purple 2011 Astralis offers a nose redolent of Christmas pudding, allspice, mocha and anise along with a lovely core of prunes, black cherry preserves and dusty earth. Medium to full-bodied, it fills the mouth with elegant, effortless fruit, with a medium level of finely grained tannins, just enough acidity, and a long and multi-layered finish. Drink it 2015 to 2030+. (Not yet released) At the time of tasting, these 2011 single vineyard wines from Clarendon Hills have not yet been released. Importer: Wine Brokers Unlimited, Hayward, CA
About the Producer
Clarendon Hills is located in the famous McLaren Vale wine region, 40 kilometers south of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. The vineyards at Clarendon Hills cover 200 acres (81 hectares) and are planted to Grenache, Merlot, Shiraz and Carbernet Sauvignon. The average age of the vines is 75 years for Grenache, 25 years for Merlot, 75 years for Shiraz and 60 years for Cabernet Sauvignon. In terms of vineyard management, the winery's owners practice minimal human intervention and respect the characteristics of the vineyard, the grapes and the vintage. The grapes are pruned by hand during the growing process and picked by hand when ripe. For winemaking, the grapes are picked and fermented naturally in open stainless steel vats for 14 to 21 days. Although most wineries in South Australia use American oak barrels to age their wines, the owner, Roman Bretesque, who is a fan of French wines, prefers to use French wines as a reference and only uses French oak barrels for the aging phase of his wines, which lasts for 18 months. The wines are then not clarified or filtered, in order to preserve the character of the vintage and the vineyard. Although Clarendon Hills also produces some Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, it is the Grenache and Syrah wines from this single vineyard that are among the world's finest. These wines combine the elegance of French wines with the intensity of Australian wines, with a ripe, full-bodied palate and exceptional aging potential. Recent outstanding vintages include the 2003, 2002, 2001, 1998, 1996 and 1992.
